• Education for refugees

Education for refugees

This brief paper looks at why there are significantly fewer girls attending secondary schools in refugee camps than boys. The paper looks at the causes of the gender gap in schooling from a study in the Rhino Refugee Camp, Uganda. These include:

• distance from school
• parents are worried about the girls’ safety
• involvement in housework and income generating activities
• girls’ have little control over the money they earn, and it is not spent on school fees
• several students had dropped out to participate in short-term vocational courses, run in other parts of the settlement
• cultural practices such as marriage and brideprice
• sexual harassment.

The paper emphasises the need for the longer term sensitisation and awareness-raising strategies being combined with appropriate practical strategies to reduce the gender imbalance in the short term. Recommendations include:

• issues arising should be discussed in separate male/female groups in a participatory and gender-sensitive manner in order to generate possible solutions
• teachers and school authorities should be included in awareness campaigns and be available to provide guidance for young refugees facing difficulties in accessing education
• affirmative action for girls unable to pay school fees should be introduced
• female teaching staff must be employed; incentives may be required
• support for young refugees with children or other family responsibilities should be established within the refugee community
• school accommodation is vital at secondary level, especially in larger refugee settlements
• consideration of the separate needs of male and female students is essential and adequate supervision must be ensured.

This article is part of a collection of articles on education in emergencies featured in the Forced Migration Review.

• Full text of document
• Publisher details
• Send to a friend